By Haley Cinotto
It was announced on Monday that Nicolas Cage will be starring in his first major TV role as Tiger King Joe Exotic from popular Netflix documentary Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, which premiered March 20th on the streaming service.
During Tuesday’s (May 5th) episode of The Tonight Show, Jimmy Fallon seems to be beyond thrilled with the casting news. The host took it upon himself to give viewers a “sneak preview” of how he imagines Nicolas Cage’s upcoming performance as Joe Exotic could play out. In the hilarious short clip, Fallon filmed throughout his home while mimicking Joe Exotic’s wardrobe including a bleached mullet, handlebar mustache, sunglasses, and a cheetah button down shirt. Naturally, there is a lot of yelling about Carole Baskin and a parody song, since the real Joe Exotic perceives himself as a singer.
Fallon joked on his show, “Everyone on the internet is all freaking out about it and is all excited about it, and we are so excited about it too, only because we got sneak footage, a sneak peek at Tiger King starring Nicolas Cage.”
Nicolas Cage’s eight-episode scripted series will be produced by Imagine Television Studios and CBS Television Studios. The story will be based on the Texas Monthly article published in 2019, “Joe Exotic: A Dark Journey Into the World of a Man Gone Wild,” by Leif Reigstad. It’s not yet known where or when the show will air, but Saturday Night Live star Kate McKinnon is already set to play Baskin in a limited Hulu series. That project has been in the works since November. The real Joe Exotic is currently serving a 22-year sentence in a Texas prison on 19 federal charges, including animal abuse and hiring someone to murder his rival Carole Baskin.
Watch Fallon as Cage as Joe Exotic below.
Photo: YouTube
